The Hudson's Bay Company will concentrate on five private-lable brands, while dumping 20 under-performing private-label brands. It wants to increase private label sales from a current 9% to 15% of sales by 2017. By next Fall, the only in-house brands at Hudson's Bay will be:

Private label brands are twice as profitable as carrying designer brands. They're also 'exclusive' (not found elsewhere), potentially benefitting a retailer if popular.

Hudson's Bay Company Signature is the somewhat pricey Hudson's Bay striped merchandise label carried at selected Hudson's Bay stores, selected Lord & Taylor stores in the US and at the two new Hudson's Bay airport stores we previously discussed.

1670 will be an entirely new label to be launched autumn 2013. It will feature contemporary men's and women's fashions at 'moderate price-points' according to an industry insider who had little other information.